Growth
by laurzz
Summary: DannyLindsayLucy and ? - Post season 9. You know how we found out Lindsay was pregnant? Well, let's fill in those blanks we're dealing with now, shall we?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Howdy folks! How's it going? I've got myself another little story here for you. It's gonna be a multichaptered, but like the one I've just completed - it's completely written in it's entirety. I was actually debating posting it all in one go, but the way I wrote it gives natural breaks in the flow so I figure it might be better as a chaptered story. Hope you guys don't mind this.**

**I actually tried to post this last night but wasn;t playing. Hopefully it's all fixed and working now! **

**I wanted to write something like this for a while and I actually wrote it one sitting. all 10,000+ words. What a shame I couldn't do my degree on DL because my thesis paper would have been quite the wonderful experience. hahah! Although, saying this... I feel DL may not have helped my career as a teacher much... anyway, I digress. **

**Okay, I've got a little bit of a disclaimer/self-defence thing now. hahah I feel like self-defence sounds kind of like whoaaa, what's wrong... but just, bear with me for a minute. hahaha; as you surely know based on the amount of free time I have I'm not a mommy yet, therefore never had a baby... As a result I've decided to gloss over elements of childbirth etc in the story the best I can. I am however a kindergarten/reception teacher so you guys will have to deal with my inner teacher coming out through the characters when they're talking to Lucy. I only realised what I'd done once I read it back. But hey, what you gonna do? hahaha. **

**I realise this will A/N essentially gives away the actual happenings of the story, but let's face it, you were going to find out eventually. **

**p.s. hope you guys like this!**

* * *

Killing the engine and taking the key from the ignition, Lindsay laid her head against the head rest, seeking solace in the fact that she was home after a long, tiring day. Her days were usually long and draining, but hauling around a Messer baby – and a Messer baby boy at that – made the tasking days that bit more difficult.

"Mommy… are we gettin' out?"

"Give Mommy a second, sweetheart," Lindsay said, glancing up in her rear-view mirror. Lucy was sat, perched on the edge of her booster seat with eager eyes.

"Are you ok, Mommy?"

"I'm just tired, honey." Lindsay said, laying a hand on her stomach. "Baby has really taken it out of me today."

"You should tell him to quit." Lucy concluded. "Or make Daddy look after him for a little while."

"Maybe." Lindsay said absentmindedly as she unfastened her seatbelt and reached for the casefiles and her purse that she'd piled in the passenger seat. She opened the car and heaved herself out of it. It was times like this that she cursed her tiny frame. She'd been the same when she'd been pregnant with Lucy. She was fine and then boom, she wasn't anymore. Sure, she and Danny created beautiful, flawless babies… but boy did she pay for it while they were growing inside of her.

She was two weeks away from her due date now and if she was completely honest, she wasn't entirely sure she'd make it to her due date. She wasn't even sure she'd last another day at this rate. She'd been a few days late with Lucy, but she suspected things would be different with this little guy.

She rounded the car with heavy footsteps as her heavy eyes blinked shut as she made her way to her daughter's side of the car. She opened the door and placed the casefiles on the roof as she carefully and cautiously bent as best she could to retrieve Lucy from her seat. Lucy stretched her arms out towards her mother and Lindsay frowned almost instantly.

"I don't think we can do that today, honey." Lindsay said softly.

"But… why?" The hurt look on Lucy's face broke Lindsay's heart in record time.

"Because Mommy is hurting and baby is making it hard for Mommy to move today."

"But… you always carry me into the house from the car." Lucy pointed out. "Always Mommy."

Lindsay closed her eyes as she fought the frustration rising within her. Her baby was six. She didn't know that she was heavily pregnant and about to pop with what could only be described as a toddler. She should have known pro-creating with Danny Messer was only going to end in pain.

Lindsay silently held her arms out and the tears that threatened in Lucy's eyes instantly disappeared. Lindsay somehow managed to balance Lucy on her hip as she shut the car door with her free hand before locking it and grabbing her case files from the roof.

"We can't do this for much longer, okay?" Lindsay said through gritted teeth as she made her way up the drive. She knew in her heart of hearts she shouldn't be lifting Lucy, but she couldn't bring herself to say no to the little girl. So much had already changed and her baby brother wasn't even here yet. Lindsay wanted to remind herself regularly that while she was adjusting to the idea of welcoming a son into her's and Danny's life, she also had a little girl to think of. A little girl that was used to having Mommy and Daddy all to herself for six long years.

Lindsay placed Lucy down on the ground on the porch as she dug in her purse for her keys. She slipped them into the lock, wondering why on earth she'd shoved them back into her purse after locking the car door when she knew she'd be opening the front door soon anyway.

"We're home!" Lindsay called into their home. After debates and discussions ranging through the last few years of whether they should or shouldn't buy themselves a house, Lindsay falling pregnant had sealed the deal. There was no way they could have functioned in a two bed apartment with two children. They needed a home. A base for where they could grow as a family. Where their children could grow.

And as Lindsay watched Lucy settle into her surroundings, she realised this is exactly what she'd always wanted; a home with her family.

"Hey girls! I'm upstairs, Linds!"

Seeing that Lucy was happy enough reuniting with her toys she'd clearly missed over the course of the day, Lindsay padded up the stairs to the sound of where Danny was clearly hammering something.

She followed the sounds and she realised they were coming from her son's room. She poked her head in and instantly placed her hand against her chest as emotions threatened to overwhelm her.

They'd bought the furniture months ago – when they'd first moved in. But just like they had with Lucy, they hadn't dared to assemble everything just in case. Neither had expressed their fears out loud, but Lindsay knew that the last thing either of them could deal with would be disassembling an unused crib and changing table.

But as she laid her hand on her heavily pregnant stomach, she had a feeling that Danny had suppressed his nightmarish fears and had spent his day off work assembling their son's nursery.

"What do you think?" he said, turning in his jeans and wifebeater. "Is it what you wanted?"

"And more," she whimpered as she absorbed everything he'd done.

The dark-wood crib was resting against the wall, the matching changing table was in the corner and the closet was filled with his clothes on tiny little hangers. Stuffed animals filled empty spaces and in the corner, Lucy's old rocking chair was stood proudly, waiting for the first evening where they rocked their son to sleep.

"Danny, it's perfect." Lindsay whispered. "It's everything I wanted it to be. Thank you."

"Anything for you, Linds." He said, crossing the room and dropping a kiss to her temple.

"Ew, you're all sweaty!" she implored, feeling his sweaty skin stick to her bare skin.

"You're not usually complainin'."

"Yeah but usually, I'm sweaty too… wait, that's what got me into this mess… so you sweaty can't be a good thing."

"Hmm, I think you don't mean that."

"I probably don't." she smirked at him as she stood on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his lips. "Go shower. I'll get dinner going."

"Okay." He said, pressing a kiss to her forehead before admiring his work for a prolonged moment. He then made motions to leave the room, leaving her behind. He disappeared for a moment, before she felt his presence behind her again.

"What?" she asked, not even turning around to see him. She absorbed the image of the nursery before her casting her eyes over her shoulder.

"I'm gonna say this once more… If I see you carryin' her into the house again, I'll kill you Montana. Will you stop with that?"

Lindsay rolled her eyes. She was surprised his chastisement hadn't come sooner… like as soon as they'd stepped through the door like it usually did.

"Okay, I promise." She said, just like she always did.

"Uh huh," he muttered, "Sure."

She laid her hand on her stomach and sighed as she made her way into the newly transformed nursery. She sat herself down in the rocking chair and began rocking herself softly to and fro. Everything was in place and they were now just waiting for their new little arrival.

And judging by the twinges in her back and the feeling in the pit of her stomach, they weren't going to be waiting for much longer.

* * *

She yawned heavily as she reached for the file she'd been mulling over in the break room. She'd felt a little stiff sat at her desk and had decided on a scene change about fifteen minutes ago… but something didn't feel right. She didn't feel right. Reaching for her drink, she stopped mid air and took a deep breath as she laid her hand against her back; bracing herself as the wave of pain flittered through her. She gripped the tabletop in front of her as she gritted her teeth together.

She knew this was going to happen. Of course. Why wouldn't it? She couldn't be at home with her bag packed, ready for the ride to the hospital. She took a deep breath as she hauled herself off the stool she'd somehow managed to climb on earlier.

She grit her teeth together as she fought through her butterfly nerves as she padded through the hallways, in search of her dear husband – the only reason she was currently in this mess!

She stood in the middle of the hallway, thanking the powers that be for the glass walls. When she wanted some privacy to cry silent tears, or spend a quiet moment with Danny, she cursed them… but right now – she couldn't be more thankful for them.

Spying Danny hunched over a computer screen in the AV lab, Lindsay set off for him as she placed her hand firmly against her stomach, trying to ease off any pain before she reached him. In her head she was counting the time between the contractions. She'd experienced one about ten minutes ago, but then she'd just thought it was something she'd eaten repeating on her… apparently not.

She gripped on the edge of the door as she felt the next contraction hit her in its force. Six minutes apart, but they were getting quicker, she noted. She must have been panting and breathing heavily because it got Danny's attention. He turned in his seat and eyed her worriedly, watching her carefully.

"Is everything alright, Linds," He asked with wide eyes.

Lindsay shook her head silently as she fought through the last few seconds of her contraction. "no, no things aren't alright."

"What's the matter?" he stood and almost flipped the chair over with his force as he stood. He made his way over to her and placed his hand over her bump, running his hand over the tight skin, searching for some answers as if her stomach was a crystal ball.

"Danny, my water broke." She whispered, her eyes glassy, looking up at him with fear and excitement in her eyes. "I think I'm in labour."

"But… you're not due for another two weeks!" he implored.

"Oh that's right." She blinked. "Sorry, I'll just let him know that, shall I?"

"Right, right. Yeah, sorry." Danny blinked. "Um…. Ok… let's uh… let's… what do we do?"

Lindsay stared at him for a minute and shook her head. "You know what, you wait here. Let me go and find Adam. He was better at this than you clearly are."

"No. no. we don't need him." Danny said, grabbing her hand. "I'll uh… you wait… fuck, Linds, tell me what to do."

Lindsay sighed heavily, feeling the words she said to Adam six years ago being repeated. "Go get the car and meet me in the garage in five minutes. I'll go tell Mac we've got to go."

"Okay."

"Log off your station." She told him as he motioned to leave the AV lab. "Or at least get someone to finish it off."

"Yeah, yeah." Danny turned and Adam had already picked the chair Danny had thrown on the floor and was finishing off Danny's series of searches already.

"I got it, buddy. You go have yourself a kid."

"Thanks Adam," Danny said, clasping his hand onto Adam's back. He then turned and pressed a kiss to Lindsay's forehead. "I'll see you in a few minutes. Take it easy. I'll be waiting for you in the garage, okay?"

Lindsay nodded as she felt his hands cup her cheeks. She swallowed heavily and blinked up at him. "I'm scared."

"Me too." Danny whispered, "But we'll be okay. We're good at this. We can do this."

Lindsay licked her lips and nodded in agreement. "Okay, I…. I… contraction!"

Danny gripped her hand tightly as his other hand went to support her back. He rubbed her lower back in soothing circles, whispering words that Lindsay couldn't quite catch into her temple. Just being in his presence made her feel a little bit better. The wave finished a little quicker than the others before had done and she wondered if that was a good or bad thing.

"We've gotta go." She told him before her thoughts could consume her. "But Danny, I changed my mind; I don't want you to leave me."

"I won't, I promise. I won't leave you." He paused and she could see Danny visibly thinking of his plan of action. "Alright, let's go to the office, grab your bag, tell Mac, ask him to get Lucy and then we'll go."

"Okay." Lindsay swallowed. She began walking towards their office and she felt him take her hand and squeeze it tight. She closed her eyes as she took a series of deep breaths. It wasn't how she'd imagined – but she couldn't have hoped for anything better either.

And now it was time to have her baby.

* * *

**Messer baby number 2! or at least the beginnings of! I hope you guys don't mind but I needed to fill in the blanks for myself... so figured I would share to. let me know what you think! I hope there's some of you still out there. even if you're lurking in the shadows! come and say hi! :) **


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow! You guys are just amazing. I can't believe the response this story has got so far. this is unreal. thank you all so much! it's been so amazing refreshing my inbox and having so much interest! I'm so glad you guys are excited for it. I'm excited for you to read it. I HAVE SO MANY FEELS. sorry haha. **

**I wrote this chapter super quick tonight because I just felt it needed a little bit of something extra before i get into the other parts. I figured you guys wouldn't mind ;) It's only short but it's something. Hope you guys like it. **

* * *

"Alright Linds, breathe through it. Come on baby, you can do it."

"It hurts," she whimpered, gripping his hand over the console between them as Danny sped through the relatively empty streets on the route he'd planned. He had the lights on and sirens for when he needed the traffic to get the hell out of their way.

"It'll be done in three… two… one. And relax."

He cast his eyes in her direction and frowned as her face contorted with pain before she visibly relaxed in front of him. He knew it wouldn't be for long, but he hated to see her in so much pain – even if the end result would be worth it.

"Just so you know," she said, stroking her thumb over his hand. "I hate you."

"I know."

"You're humouring me."

"I'm not," He laughed, not at all helping his argument. "I would hate me too if I was you."

"Hmmm." Lindsay eyed him with a scowl on her face. She sighed heavily before sitting back in the passenger seat. "I do kind of love you though."

"I kind of love you too, Linds." He said, pulling their intertwined hands towards his lips as he pressed a soft kiss to her hand he was holding. "We ain't far now… just a few more minutes, okay? Think you'll be okay?"

"I don't have much of an option either way, do I? Gonna have to suck it up and deal with it… speaking of… another contraction."

Danny squeezed her hand as she puffed through her contraction.

"In, out, in, out... come on baby, you can do it."

"This is so much different to last time." She said through gritted teeth.

"Tell me about it when your contraction's done, babe."

She managed a smile as she neared the end of her latest contraction. "He better be a good kid. Not give us much trouble you know?"

"Will you breathe?" Danny chastised her as she fought through the last seconds of her contraction. "Jesus Montana."

"I'm serious," she said as she settled against the seat again.

"I know." He grinned.

* * *

"My wife is in labour!" Danny cried as he wheeled Lindsay towards the Nurse's station. After nearly ramming Lindsay into the elevator wall on their ride up to the fourth floor he'd tried to be a little cautious but he couldn't help his nervous hands. He was looking after precious cargo and he suddenly had a lot of respect for Adam and how well he had done when Lindsay had gone into labour with Lucy.

"Name?"

"Lindsay Messer." Danny barked as he gripped the handles of Lindsay's wheelchair. "She's two weeks early."

"You called from the car?" The nurse directed her question down to Lindsay.

"Yeah." Lindsay smiled.

"Okay, we have your Doctor on her way." The nurse paused as she glanced between Danny and Lindsay. "Is this your first child?" She directed the question to Lindsay, but eyed Danny with amusement in her eyes.

"No, but the way he's acting you'd think so. We have a six year old."

"Hey, I wasn't here for this part!" Danny defended himself. "Where do we need to go? What do we need to do? Do I need to do anything? Linds do you-"

"Okay, you need to stop." Lindsay growled at him, turning in the wheelchair. "You're done freaking out now, ok? Get your shit together and man up, Danny. You're being ridiculous. Calm down because you're stressing me out."

"You tell him, honey." The nurse grinned. "Take a deep breath and relax, Dad. You don't need to do anything right now. I'll lead you to your room where we can get you a gown to wear." She directed the latter part of her sentence to Lindsay. "Follow me."

"Thanks," Lindsay said, feeling the tightening in her stomach start up again. "And before we go, can you give him a sedative, otherwise you'll need to direct us to the morgue because by the time I've delivered this baby; I will have killed him." Her voice went up on 'killed him' due to the start of her contraction taking over – but it just added to the sincerity of her threat.

Before the nurse had a chance to answer, Danny was knelt down in front of Lindsay, holding her hands with his and looking her square in her face. His eyes were locked on her's and he was quietly talking her through the pain. Any sign of his previous fears and concerns were gone – completely – and he was a pillar of strength for her.

The nurse folded her arms as she leant against the wall, watching the two of them carefully. She saw hundreds of couples a week and she always tried to pick out her favourite from the week. It was only Monday, but she knew for a fact that the couple in front of her right now would take the crown for the week.

"You're okay," Danny said, whispering his words to her as he pressed his lips to her forehead. "You're alright."

"I am when you're here." She whispered back to him, pressing a kiss to the tip of his nose. "I'm glad you didn't miss it this time, baby."

"Me too."

* * *

"Danny, just trust me. It's Jennifer Lawrence. Two down."

"It's not."

"Danny, she won the Oscar for Silver Linings Playbook. Trust me, it's her."

"She was in that?"

"We went to see it!" Lindsay rolled her eyes as she snatched the pen from his hand and filled in the actress's name in the cross word they were cuddled in her bed doing. "I swear, why do we even bother with date nights?!"

"Because little things like him happen." Danny said, laying his hand on Lindsay's stomach and rubbing it affectionately.

"We don't know for sure that was when we conceived him."

"I'm willing to bet on it though." Danny said with a twinkle in his eye.

"Oh yeah, like what, a _Benjamin_?"

"Maybe," He smirked. "So, how's it feeling?"

"Labour?"

"No, life. Dumb-ass." Danny rolled his eyes. "yes, labour."

"Painful, tiring, exhausting. The usual. You better be damn grateful, husband of mine. I didn't go into this lightly. I seem to remember vowing and declaring that I'd never do this again."

"It'd be too cruel to starve the world of Messer children though," Danny said simply. "I mean, take Lucy – the world is a better place with her. Just like it'll be a better place with him."

"You know, there's still a chance he could be a she. How would you feel about that?" Lindsay asked, highly amused at the prospect.

"I'd love her with all my heart – she'd just have to deal with me forcing baseball onto her."

"Oh so you'd take it well then?" Lindsay mused before the grin dropped from her face and she gripped Danny's hand tightly. The cross word that had been draped over his lap was now discarded on the bed as her head flopped back onto the pillow as she cried out in pain. "This one hurts!" she told him.

He could tell without her confirmation. She was twisted in knots around him despite her swollen body. Her face was etched with pain and her vice grip on his hand told him that she was suffering.

"I got'cha baby." He whispered into her temple, pressing a kiss her soft hair. "I'm sorry it hurts so bad."

"Make it stop," she begged him.

"If I could, I would." He said, "but I can only give you this." He said, handing her the mouthpiece for her gas and air.

She took it wordlessly and rammed the contraption into her mouth, biting down on the mouthpiece as she fought through the height of her contraction. He sat back from her, giving her a little space – considering he'd invaded her personal space quite considerably. He watched her and he couldn't feel anything but love for her. She was so strong – but she allowed herself to be vulnerable with him. She let him see her tears, sweat and pain. She let him see her at what she thought was her worst – but to Danny, it was one of her highlights. He admired her strength and determination to bring their children into the world. Granted, he was there for the ride; supporting her in whatever way she needed and accepting the death threats she threw in his direction – but really, it was all on her…

"That hurt. I don't want another one like that." She whimpered as she snuggled further into her pillow. "I want him to just come out now."

"Why don't you sneeze? Before I say god bless you could have had him." He teased.

"You're absolutely hilarious." Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Next joke at my expense, please."

"You know I'm not bein' mean." He said, kissing her hand. "Stop being grumpy, Montana."

"Grumpy? Danny, I'm in labour with your child – I could be a demon wife and you'd have to deal with it, because it's your fault I'm here."

"Mine?"

"Go on, argue with me." She dared him. "No really, go on and tell me how I was there that night too… and how I was just as into the baby making process as you were. Go on. And then maybe we can just shove a watermelon through-"

"I beg you not to finish that sentence baby. I take it back, you're right. It's my fault. I'm sorry."

"So I should think so." She scoffed. "Alright, where did the pen go?" she asked as she picked the cross word up from the blanket on her bed.

Danny silently handed her the pen, amused at her sudden change in mood. _What was she saying about being a demon wife? _He settled down against her pillow again and offered her his knee so she could lean it against him, rather than her. "Two down's Hunger Games co-star; Josh..." Lindsay read. "Josh…. What's his name?"

"Hutcherson." Danny said.

Lindsay blinked at him, "How on earth did you know that?"

"Lucy and I watched a movie he did when he was a kid. Supposed to be a bit like Jumanji. It wasn't bad actually. They were playin' this board game and ended up in Space."

"I swear, the things you two watch." Lindsay furrowed her brow. "And she liked it?"

"Loved it." Danny nodded. "She made me buy it from Amazon that night."

"And you did? Danny... for goodness sake."

"She said please!" he added lamely, to which Lindsay rolled her eyes.

Danny exhaled as Lindsay filled in the crossword with her pretty handwriting. He sighed heavily before pressing a kiss to the crown of her head.

"That was nice… what was it for?"

"I just love you." He said simply. "And I'm excited for you know… our baby." He laid a hand on her stomach and rubbed it softly.

"Yeah," she said, laying her hand on top of his with a sigh. "Me too."

* * *

**This is so fluffy and couply, I feel now, reading it back. Blame my tv choices from tonight. I watched the new new girl episode (gahhh) the two new HIMYM episodes (I AM DONE) and then CSI:NY's episode where we met Adam's girlfriend and they dance in the kitchen/living room/adam's bedroom together. So as I am sure you can imagine, I literally just died all over the place tonight. So I'd apologise for the fluff, but it's quite possible that it's illegal to apologise for fluff - so I'm not even sorry hahaha. **

**thanks for reading folks! let me know what you thought about the fluff ;) **


	3. Chapter 3

**And here we are again folks! Once again, thank you all so much for the love. i'm glad you liked the impromptu chapter. I'm glad I wrote it now. it's what the story needed I feel. i'm sure it won't make much difference to yourselves, but it made a difference to me. hahaha. **

**now, anyone for a little but of Lucy? ;)**

* * *

Skipping down the hallway with her hand tucked tightly in Uncle Mac's hand, Lucy smiled at the balloons he held in his free hand. The brightly coloured bundle of balloons reminded Lucy of Up!, the movie with the cute talking puppy. She glanced up and down at Mac and tried to figure out whether if she let go, the balloons would carry him up to the clouds in the sky.

"You look deep in thought, Lucy." Mac smiled. "What are you thinking about?"

"If I let go of your hand, will those balloons make you fly?"

"No," Mac chuckled. "They wouldn't, Lucy."

"Oh." She frowned. "Why?"

"Well, because I'm too heavy; perhaps if I had a few more."

Lucy pursed her lips together. "What about if I held them and you let go of my hand, would they carry me up to the sky?"

"No," Mac smiled again. "You're too heavy."

"But I'm not as heavy as you." She observed.

"You're very right about that, but even you would need some more balloons than just this, sweetheart."

"Oh." Lucy frowned

Mac paused at the elevators. "Do you want to press the button?"

Lucy gleamed at him. "What, me? Really?"

"Sure," Mac smiled. "We're going up."

"Okay!" she grinned as she hovered over the up button. "This one, right?"

"That's the one." Mac smiled.

Lucy returned his smile as she rocked back and forth on her converse clad feet. She sighed heavily before turning to Mac and squeezing his hand. "Hey, uncle Mac?"

"Yeah sweetheart."

"Why do you have this ring on your finger now?" She asked him. "It's like Daddy's."

"Well, remember when you wore that pretty dress and threw petals down the aisle at the church?"

Lucy nodded.

"Well, you were a part of my wedding. You were mine and Christine's flower girl. We got married."

Lucy blinked. "You got married? To Christine? So she's your wife now? Like Mommy is Daddy's wife?"

"Yeah." Mac smirked. "Don't you remember? You had a pretty dress on. You sat and ate with Mommy and Daddy and Uncle Flack and everyone on a big round table? You and I danced?"

"Oh." Lucy giggled. "I remember that. I just thought we were having a party."

Mac laughed. "No honey, that was mine and Christine's wedding; but I guess it was kind of a party when you put it like that."

"Oh." Lucy nodded. "Okay."

Mac shook his head in amusement as Lucy sighed heavily; she stepped forward and pressed the up button over and over again.

"Hey, hey, what are you doing that for Lucy? Be careful, you could break it."

"But Daddy does it all the time."

Mac smirked. "I don't doubt that. Do you ever see Mommy doing it though?"

Lucy thought about it for a moment. "No and she tells Daddy not to do it."

Mac nodded. "Okay, so if you don't see Mommy doing it, you probably shouldn't do it either."

"What about Daddy?"

"That's still up for discussion," Mac quipped as the elevator doors opened. He tugged Lucy onto the elevator and told her to press the button that had a number four on it. She did so and went back to holding his hand tightly. They rode in silence for a few minutes before Lucy looked up to face Mac.

"Uncle Mac," she began.

"Lucy.." he grinned at her.

"Where are we going?"

* * *

"You're doing so good baby. You can do this. Come on baby."

Danny Messer swallowed heavily as he watched his wife writhe in pain on the bed in front of him. It killed him to see her in so much pain, but he knew the end result would be so worth it.

"Come on baby, just a few more pushes now."

"I'm trying," she cried through her panting breaths. "Do it for me?" She whimpered as she squeezed his hand tightly.

"I wish I could," he said softly, despite the chaos around them. He pressed a kiss to her bruised and bandaged hand from the IV drip and he squeezed it reassuringly. "Come on, let's do this together. Three, two, one… push!"

Through her panting breaths and screams, Danny could hear Lindsay's doctor spurring her on too. "You're doing great, Lindsay. Keep going. The head is crowning."

Just like he had when Lucy was being delivered, Danny shot down to the end of the bed and watched as his son entered the world.

"He's got a head!" He announced to Lindsay.

"I should hope so!" Lindsay cried as she reached for Danny. "Danny, I need you!"

Scrambling back to her side, Danny held her hand tightly and brushed the bangs from her face with his free hand. "You can do this, Montana. You're nearly done now. He's nearly here. Come on baby, you can do it. You can do it."

Lindsay took an almighty breath and gripped Danny's hand tighter than she had ever done so before. She hunched over and he could see that was now nearing stages of desperation. After seemingly countless hours of painful contractions and forty five minutes in the delivery room, he could see that Lindsay was utterly exhausted.

"One more push Lindsay, come on, you can do it. Take one more deep breath before you officially become a Mom of two." Her doctor smiled up at her reassuringly.

She took a deep breath, glanced towards Danny briefly and he instantly pressed a kiss to her forehead. She then closed her eyes and pushed harder than she had ever before. And as she gasped for breath, they heard the first cries of their baby son.

"Do you want to cut the cord, Dad?"

Danny swallowed as he accepted the scissors with shaking hands. He cut the cord connecting his son to his wife quickly. He handed the scissors back to Lindsay's doctor and instantly made his way back to Lindsay who was catching her breath and just like he had when she'd delivered Lucy, he cupped her face and pressed a series of kisses to her temple, whispering words of pride and encouragement.

Just as Lindsay was about to ask where her son was, she could see him coming towards her in the arms of the nurse. She swallowed as she held her arms out, ready to accept him. She took a deep breath as she felt the nurse placing him into her arms and instantly she was enveloped with love for her new baby son.

"He's so perfect," Lindsay whispered as tears cascaded down her cheeks. "Look at him, Danny. He's so perfect."

Danny cleared his throat and wiped his eyes free of the tears that had slid down his cheeks as he watched Lindsay's face as she laid eyes on her son for the first time. He'd experienced this sensation only once in his life before, and that was when Lindsay had first held Lucy, all those years ago. Watching her with his son – their son – made him feel like… he couldn't actually put into words the emotions he was going through. All he knew was that he was happiest, luckiest and proudest man on the planet.

"You did it Linds," He whispered against her temple as their little boy settled into Lindsay's arms contently. "You did it again; he's so perfect."

Lindsay turned and shook her head softly, her cheeks rosy and her hair soaked from her exertion, "No baby, we did it again." She said softly as she pressed a kiss to his lips. "We did it."

* * *

Mac cleared his throat as Lucy looked up to him with waiting eyes.

"Uncle Mac? Where are we goin'?"

Mac licked his lips and lowered himself to Lucy's level. "So, you know how Mommy has had a baby in her tummy for what I'm sure seems a long time now…"

"Yeah," Lucy giggled. "She got really fat."

Mac's eyes widened. "Lucy, you can't say that about people… it will hurt their feelings. Mommy didn't really get fat; she had your brother in her tummy too."

"No Uncle Mac, it's okay, Mommy knows she got fat. Daddy said so."

Mac rolled his eyes and cursed Danny. He loved him like a son, but sometimes Danny Messer drove him to insanity. "Lucy, this is one of those times where things that Daddy does doesn't always mean it's okay for you to do them too, okay? Do me a favour and don't say that about Mommy anymore, okay?"

"Okay." Lucy smiled. "Is Daddy gonna be in trouble for bein' mean to Mommy?"

"I'm thinking about it." Mac smiled at Lucy's innocent little accent shining through. She was already dropping letters at the end of her words, much like Danny did. The little girl might look like Lindsay through and through now, but Danny's personality coursed through Lucy's veins.

"So where are we goin'?" Lucy asked again as the elevator doors opened up. There were brightly coloured mosaics on the wall and Mac could see Lucy's eyes brighten at the sight of the displays on the wall.

"This way, Lucy." He said as he led her down a hallway. Lucy made a point of looking everywhere around her, especially at the bright, pretty pictures on the wall. She pursed her lips together in confusion as she looked in all of the different rooms. It looked a lot like the lab where Mommy and Daddy worked in that there were lots of glass windows where you could peek inside the room and see what the people inside were looking at, but when she peeked inside the rooms like she did when she was at the lab with Mommy or Daddy, she saw that everyone wasn't working on finding bad guys with special things, but they were looking at babies.

"Uncle Mac, why has everyone got babies?" She asked. "Is this like a baby lab? Do they make babies here?" She paused before gasping "Do they make dollies here? Am I getting a new dolly?"

Mac laughed. "No sweetheart, you're not getting a new dolly. We're going to sit here for a few minutes though, okay?" Mac said, sitting down on a chair in a room with colouring books, a TV and a small table. "Listen, come and sit here with me for a minute, okay? I need to talk to you about something."

"Okay." Lucy said as she climbed up onto the chair. She turned her head and smiled expectantly at Mac.

"Okay, so today when Mommy was at work she had some funny butterflies in her tummy that told her that your baby brother was nearly ready to be born."

"Butterflies?" Lucy's eyes widened. "But… why? How did they get in there?"

"Well, they weren't actually butterflies." Mac smiled. "They're more like a feeling. Do you remember on your first day of Kindergarten?" Mac paused as Lucy nodded. "Do you remember feeling really scared but excited too?"

"Yeah," Lucy giggled. "I had funny feelings in my tummy."

Mac smiled. "We call those funny feelings, 'butterflies' Lucy, they're not really butterflies in your tummy, but sometimes it can feel like a butterfly is fluttering around in your tummy, and that's the funny feeling… well, Mommy felt something a little bit like that today and it turned out that your baby brother decided he wanted to come and meet you today."

"Today?" Lucy blinked with wide eyes. "Where is he? Did Mommy and Daddy have to go and pick him up? Is that why we're here?"

"Kind of," Mac smiled, "Except, the doctors had to get the baby from her tummy."

"Why was he in her tummy?" Lucy blinked.

"Well, that's where he's been growing, remember? Mommy had him in her tummy, just like she had you in her tummy before you were born."

"But how did he get there?"

"Well, you know what, I'm sure Daddy will tell you all about that when you're a little bit older, okay? But for right now, just believe me when I say that he was in there. Your Mommy's doctor helped Mommy and Daddy…" Mac searched for the right terminology for his six year old god-daughter. "Deliver him." He creased his lips together and crinkled his face in dismay at his choice of words.

"Oh, like the stork?"

Mac blinked. "Yes, kind of… how do you know about the stork?" After a conversation with Lindsay, Mac had been left smiling at the frustration on Lindsay's face after explaining to Danny for the fourteenth time why they weren't just going to tell Lucy a stork was going to drop her brother off. Mac had remembered Lindsay being adamant that the lies she told Lucy were restricted to Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth fairy – and nothing else. So to hear Lucy mention the Stork confused him.

"Pop-Pop in Montana told me about the stork. Mommy shouted at him though for telling me a hunk of bologna, or so Mommy said. Daddy gave me a lollipop though so I didn't really mind. I don't really like bologna; I like lollipops though."

Mac shook his head at the Messer family through the eyes of their soon to be eldest child. She wasn't the baby any more and that tugged on Mac's heartstrings - he dared not to think about what it did to Danny. Lucy had been the closest he'd ever gotten to a grandchild; at the hands of Danny and Lindsay. Although he didn't think of them as his children, he thought of them as family - and they treated him as one of their most precious, treasured family members - granting him access to all areas of their life together. And their beautiful daughter. Even if he tried, he couldn't ever even begin to express how grateful he was because of their kindness and love.

"So why are we here?" Lucy pressed.

Mac reached inside of his pocket and pulled out his phone. "I got a message from your Daddy asking me to pick you up from school. I told Jo to look after the lab so we could go and get dinner-"

"-which was yummy!" Lucy interjected.

"It was... and now," Mac smiled, "We are waiting in here for Daddy to come and get you so you can go and meet your baby brother."

Lucy's eyes widened. "What? I get to meet him? Today? Now?"

"You sure do," Mac smiled. "Now, are you ready to be a big sister Lucy?"

Lucy blinked and swallowed. "I think so."

"Good," Mac smiled "Because I think you're going to be a great big sister… how about we draw him a picture?"

"I love drawing!" Lucy exclaimed.

Mac smiled as Lucy took his hand and led him over to the miniature table in the middle of the room. She tore out a piece of paper each from the notepad sat on the table and handed it to Mac, telling him to sit. She then went over to the activity centre and grabbed the pack of crayons. She opened the box and poured them onto the table as she took her seat and wrote her name at the top of her page in her neat handwriting. She then looked to Mac expectantly, before glancing down to the crayons and his paper.

"You've gotta write your name on there." Lucy said. "Otherwise you won't know it's yours and your teacher will get cross 'cuz she won't know it belongs to you! You always gots to put your name on your work, Uncle Mac."

Mac smiled and shook his head as he picked up a red crayon and made motions to write his name in the same corner as Lucy.

"No!" She cried out, grabbing his hand. "You gotta use purple, Uncle Mac."

"I thought your favourite colour was pink."

"It is." She smiled. "But I'm on the purple table at school and the purple table has to write their name in purple."

"Is purple table the smartest table too?" Mac inquired.

"I dunno." She shrugged. "Probably."

"I would imagine so," Mac smiled as he began the uncharacteristic move of colouring and drawing with his sweet and wonderfully hilarious god-daughter.

* * *

**I love writing Lucy so I hope you guys enjoyed this. I mean the only thing we ever heard Lucy say is "Mama!" and "Mommy, mommy there's a vampire under my bed!" so I have quite little to work with in regards to her little personality, but I'm sure given the chance, we would have (hopefully) seen something a little like this. anyway. I hope you guys enjoyed this latest installment. Let me know what you thought, your thoughts are, as ever - hugely appreciated :) **


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! I am so sorry in the delay between updates. Last week was a hugely busy week for me. This year I'm teaching two different age groups therefore teaching two different curriculums - so twice the work load! It's going well, but there's no time for anything. Also, on top of that - I bought a car this week! It's my first ever car so i've been taking every opportunity to drive places and updating this story for you all just slipped my mind - but here I am now!**

**There is this chapter, and at least one more chapter after this. I may try and break the two up as it will be a long chapter but we will see. I'm rambling haha. Hope you guys like this one!**

**Just before I tune off and let you guys read, I just want to say thank you so, so, so much for your kind words! They really do mean the world to me and I am so glad you guys are letting me keep the DL world alive for you. It's a massive privilege so thanks for continually coming back to read my stories! :) **

* * *

Sitting in the seat next to his wife's bed, Danny absorbed her glowing image with pride and love. He exhaled softly and narrowed his eyes as he watched her. She was humming softly, running her fingertips over their son's delicate features. He had held his son for a few minutes so far and while he was dying to hold him for longer – he knew that Lindsay needed this time more. She'd spent the last nine months with him growing steadily within her, and to feel him in her arms was overwhelming for her. He knew this purely out of the experience he'd gained when they'd had Lucy. Lindsay had been fiercely protective of her – and a little greedy. She wasn't a good sharer when it came to their children. It was one of her qualities however that Danny didn't question or argue with. Seeing his wife holding his child with the love that she had in her eyes made him realise how truly lucky he was. He had nearly blown his chance with her once upon a time, but somehow, she had found her way back to him, and he had found his way back to her.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked him; her eyes not leaving their little boy's face.

"You." He said softly.

"And how sweaty and horrible I look?" she glanced over to him with a smile on her face before her eyes turned down to face their son again.

"No," he said simply. When he saw her roll her eyes he suppressed his own eye-roll before reaching for hand that was gently contouring their son's face. He linked his fingers with her's seamlessly and he squeezed her hand softly.

"You're my once in a lifetime."

That gained him her eye contact. He watched her exhale with a heavy breath – as if his words had pressed down on her chest.

Lindsay pulled their intertwined hands to her lips as she pressed a kiss to his knuckles. She also blinked away the unshed tears that caught on her lower lash line. "Danny," she breathed.

"You are," he said, standing before he sat on the edge of her bed. "I know the way I feel doesn't happen often. I'm so lucky Linds. I know how lucky I am. I want you to know that."

"I know," She whispered.

"You're my everything…. And you just keep giving me these precious, amazing children and I just love you. More than you'll ever know baby."

"I love you too, Danny." She said, a red blush littering her already rosy cheeks. "And I love him too."

"I can tell." Danny smirked.

"Is it that obvious?" She grinned.

"Just a little." He shrugged as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple. "You really have no idea how much you mean to me."

"Danny, I do." She insisted, looking up at him.

He shook his head. "Linds, when you're in a room with me, you know you stop the room. When you're here Linds, all I see is you."

"Danny," Lindsay spluttered as she leant her head on his shoulder. "I'm already an emotional wreck and you're not helping."

"I know." He laughed. "I know I'm a pain in your ass most days. I know I'm not the easiest person to love. I sometimes question your sanity when I think about how you actually agreed to be my wife, but you'll never know how happy you've made me, Linds. I love you doesn't even explain how I feel for you."

"I know it doesn't." she said softly, "Because I deal with the same dilemma every day. I love you is never enough for me to explain how I feel about you too… even when you drive me insane."

"I don't think you'd have me any other way though."

"I think you're right."

* * *

Practically skipping down the hallway, Danny searched his phone for the message from Mac that told him what room they were in. Danny knew already, but he just felt the need to check and then re-check.

He'd left Lindsay reluctantly. After their sentimental and slightly soppy admission of love for one another, he'd not wanted anyone to come knocking – until he remembered their daughter, no doubt impatiently waiting to meet her baby brother in a room not too far away from Lindsay's. They had debated leaving it until tomorrow for Lucy to come and meet her new brother, but they had soon realised that they didn't feel right without her. While she was still only young, they often underestimated her level of maturity. Plus, they didn't want her to miss out on such a huge milestone in their growing family.

Danny could feel butterflies in the pit of his stomach – a sensation he admittedly didn't feel all too often as he peeked inside the glass window in the door, leading him into where Lucy and Mac were currently sat at a tiny table hunched over colouring books, Danny smiled to himself – amused at how his daughter could talk Mac Taylor, head of the New York crime lab into colouring; and it was probably effortless too.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed through the door and smiled brightly as Lucy looked up at him. "Daddy!"

"Hi muffin!" Danny smiled as he leant down and captured her in his arms as she raced towards him. "You been lookin' after Uncle Mac for me?"

"Silly, Uncle Mac has been lookin' after me, Daddy. But he's done a real good job. We went to dinner, which was yummy."

"What did you get?" Danny asked.

"Ice cream." Lucy grinned.

"For dinner?" Danny implored looking at Lucy with wide eyes. "I think I need to have a little talk with Uncle Mac if he thinks we have ice cream for dinner,"

"No wait!" Lucy cried. "Before ice cream I had chicken tenders and fries! Don't shout at him, Daddy."

"I won't shout at him… this time." Danny fought the smirk on his face. "I'm sure you've said thank you, haven't you?"

"Uh-huh!" Lucy nodded. "Right Uncle Mac."

"She sure did. She even gave me a little kiss. I've saved it in my pocket for later." Mac smiled, winking at Lucy.

Lucy giggled before turning back to Danny. "Daddy, is he here yet?"

"He's here." Danny smiled. "All eight pounds, three ounces of him." Danny smiled in Mac's direction.

"Poor Lindsay." Mac crinkled his nose compassionately.

"Can I go sees him?"

"Sure," Danny nodded at his daughter with a big smile. "But listen, we've gotta be careful with Mommy. She's really tired and achy and not feeling too good, okay?"

"Why?"

"Because…" Danny looked up to Mac with wide eyes. "She uh… she…"

Mac interjected. "She's had lots of butterflies in her tummy and they've made her sleepy."

"Ah." Lucy nodded.

"Butterflies?" Danny narrowed his eyes in Mac's direction. "Really?"

"You think of something else then, Daddy." Mac smirked. "By all means, explain child birth to your daughter. You're an expert now anyway. I'm sure it won't be awkward at all…"

"Anyway…" Danny cleared his throat as he used his better judgement and decided against _that. _"How about we go and meet the newest little Messer, huh?"

"Sounds good!" Lucy giggled. "Come on Uncle Mac."

"No, no it's okay. I'll wait here."

"What?" Danny implored. "Why?"

"Yeah Uncle Mac, why? Come with us."

"No, no, listen Lucy, Danny… thanks but no, this is your moment together. I'll be along in a little while. I need to call Christine and she's going to leave the restaurant and make her way over. I'll make some calls outside. You guys go. Thank you, you've made me so happy by expecting me to come." Mac paused as he placed a hand on Danny's shoulder and squeezed it tightly. "I know I'm part of your family, but this is a moment you won't ever get back again. It needs to be the four of you."

Danny took a deep breath as Lucy shuffled on his hip. "God there's four of us now, Mac. Four Messers. Somehow I've found myself a little family…"

"Yeah well, Messer number three that you created needs to go and meet Messer number four, so you guys get going… I'll see you in a half an hour." Mac smiled brightly. "Send my love and kisses to Lindsay, Danny." Mac then turned to Lucy and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Give this to your Mommy for me Lucy, okay?"

"I will!" Lucy smiled as she reached towards Mac and wrapped her arms around his neck, while Danny still held her body. "Thanks for dinner uncle Mac. I had fun."

"Me too, Lucy." He smiled. "Shall I look after these balloons for now?"

"No, I take them." Lucy smiled as he handed them to her. "Mommy will like them."

"I bet she will," Danny smiled. "Come on pipsqueak; let's go see Mommy and your brother."

As they left the room Mac was still in, Danny looked down to his six year old daughter in his arms. She was almost as tall as his leg now and he could feel his emotions getting the better of him. It was in this very hospital where he had watched her come into the world. It was in this very hospital where he'd held her for the first time; where he'd watched Lindsay nurse her. Her life had started in this hospital… and now, she wasn't the baby she had once been in this very same hospital ward. She was a big sister. He took a deep breath as he felt her wrap her arms around his neck. She had however forgotten about the mass of balloons she was holding and did a good job of wrapping the ribbon around his neck.

"Hey, let me hold onto these okay?" he asked her, extracting the ribbons from around his neck with a free hand.

"Okay!" she smiled as she went back to wrapping her arms around his neck. He could feel her breath on his neck and he turned her head sideways slightly and inhaled her scent. She smelt like her strawberry shampoo and it was one of the very few things in the world that comforted him. He could have had the worst day in the world and with one little kiss from Lucy and the quickest whiff of her scent sent him into a more calmer state – and even though he hadn't realised how anxious he was, he could feel himself coming down from the high of the past day's events.

"Daddy?" her little voice interrupted his thoughts,

"Yeah baby?"

"I love you."

"Aw baby, I love you too." He smiled at her as he rubbed his nose against her's. "Listen, we're just outside Mommy's room… but before we go in, I just want you to know something." He paused as he sat down on the seats just outside Lindsay's room. "I just wanna tell you that no matter how different things are once the new baby comes home, Mommy and I will always always love you. You'll always be our little girl. No matter how big you get."

"Right." She smiled before frowning. "Except Daddy, you know how you say things might change...why?"

"Why what?"

"Why will they change?"

"Well the baby will probably cry sweetheart, and people are gonna wanna visit us and the baby and lots of people are gonna be all over him just like they were you when we first brought you home."

"Oh." Lucy sighed as she swung her feet back and forth. "I'm a little scared daddy."

"Why?" He asked.

"What if he doesn't like me?" She frowned. "What if he wanted a brother?"

"Lucy, he couldn't do anything but love you. He is lucky to have you as his big sister, and you know why I know that?"

"No," She shook her head.

"Because he has the best big sister in the world; I know you are going to love him and teach him things. You're going to help him grow big, because you've done all the things he's gonna need to do and you had to figure it out all on your own… well he doesn't, he has you to help him. You don't need to worry about anythin', okay sweetpea?"

"Okay," she smiled "But Daddy, I'm scared about somethin' else too." She trailed off.

"What is it?"

"Will you and Mommy still read me stories, colour with me and do things with me?"

"What?" Danny implored. "Lucy, of course we will; why are you worried about that?"

"Well, you don't have much time because of when you go and catch bad guys and I... I'm just scared that we won't get to do things when the new baby comes home. I love him Daddy but I like having time with just you and just Mommy."

"Lucy, listen to me… Nothing, and I mean nothing, not even your little brother will take that away; you hear? You both are gonna get time with me and Mommy. You don't gotta worry about that baby."

"Okay," Lucy said, taking a deep breath. "Can we go see him?"

"We can." Danny said with a smile as he held his arms out and picked Lucy up from the seat.

* * *

**And there we have it, another chapter done and dusted. I hope you guys enjoyed this. Let me know what you though. Thanks for reading! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi everyone! Sad news, this is the last chapter for "Growth". I tried to separate the chapters as a few of you requested but I just felt it flowed so much better as one. I hope this is okay with everyone. **

**A small silver lining to this is that I actually have two ideas in the pipeline for a little spin off. they're just little oneshots currently (but we all know what I'm like with supposed one-shots, right?!) well, at the moment they are just two stand alone one-shots that will include two certain little Messer children and maybe their parents. I'm going to try and find the time to write them because at the moment they're jotted down on numerous pieces of A4 paper. So look out for those in the coming weeks. **

**Now, I know some of you wanted me to go for specific names in this chapter but I actually named our little Messer before I'd even written this story, so I'm sorry if some of you are disappointed in the name, I think you will like it though. I do however think Izzi Creo caught my hint from a previous chapter regarding his name ;) **

**Thank you all so much for sticking with this story. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I know I loved writing it. And I do genuinely appreciate your love and kindness after I post the chapters. It always means so much to hear from you guys, so thank you! **

**without any more rambles, I'll let you read on! :) **

* * *

Lindsay exhaled softly and contently as her eyes gazed down at the bundle in her arms. Despite her numerous attempts to pinch herself to make sure she wasn't dreaming, she still didn't feel like it was real. After all her months of waiting and preparing, she was finally holding her little boy.

It had been magical the first time she had held Lucy – but she also hadn't known what to expect; resulting in her excitement and contentment being overpowered by sheer fear in that she did not under any circumstances want to mess this up for her beautiful, precious little girl. But now, holding her son with six years of experience under her's and Danny's belts, she could relax a little more. She knew for a fact it wasn't going to be easy, but she also knew she was a damn good Mom and Danny was a fantastic Dad and together they made quite the team.

She glanced up from her cooing son and spotted Lucy's converse clad feet swinging back and forth as she sat next to Danny on the seats outside of her hospital room. They were facing ahead so Lindsay could just see the sides of their faces. She titled her head to the side as she observed the looks and expressions on Danny's face. Lucy's mouth was moving and based on what she could see, it looked like Lucy had just shoved a dagger through his heart. She then watched him reassure Lucy with conviction that even though she couldn't hear what he was saying, Lindsay herself believed it. She smiled brightly as she watched them move from the seats and she pressed a soft kiss to her son's head, ready for Lucy to come in and finally meet her little brother.

The door opened and Lindsay looked to her daughter with glee in her eyes. Lucy was tiptoeing across the room with a finger pressed against her lips. "Shhh, we has to be quiet Mommy."

Lindsay smiled as she looked towards Danny who, after tying up a bunch of brightly coloured balloons to a chair arm, swooped up behind Lucy and picked her up, placing her on the bed next to Lindsay.

"Hi baby," Lindsay whispered as she pressed a kiss to Lucy's temple. "I've missed you. Did you have fun with Uncle Mac?"

"Uh huh," Lucy nodded, her eyes staring down intently at the bundle in Lindsay's arms.

"Do you want to see him?" Lindsay asked with a smile tugging at her lips.

"Uh huh." Lucy nodded, swallowing heavily. "I got butterflies in my tummy Mommy."

"Me too," Lindsay smiled at her.

"Me three," Danny added in jest as he hovered next to Lucy so that he could catch her should she wriggle off the bed.

"Lucy, this is your brother." Lindsay's voice was soft. "This is Benjamin."

Lucy's eyes winded. "Benjamin?"

"Benjamin," Lindsay nodded, looking up at Danny with a smile.

"Mommy… I liked the name Benjamin."

"We know." Danny smiled. "And we liked it too."

"So you picked my name… the name I wanted to call him?" Lucy asked, realisation dawning in her little, excited voice.

"We did." Lindsay smiled.

"Hi Benjamin," Lucy squealed excitedly as she held her head over his so that she could see his face. "I'm Lucy. I'm your big sister."

Lindsay turned to Danny with tears in her eyes, only to witness Danny wiping his own away. Their history had started a long while before their shared night together on a pool table, but with the promise of a Benjamin between the two of them, the stakes had heated up – more literally than either of them had anticipated. When Lucy had suggested the name when they were all snuggled together in their bed on one stormy afternoon together, Danny and Lindsay had shared a look that had sparked between the two of them. Benjamin gave them _the _feeling. Benjamin clicked. Lucy had also suggested Princess Sophia, Aladdin, Flounder and Sebastian beforehand… but Benjamin – that one was a keeper.

"Can we call him Benjamin Minion?" Lucy asked, her eyes still gazing down at her new baby brother.

"Minion?" Danny implored. "Why Benjamin Minion? Is that even a name? Minion, where have I heard that used before?"

"Despicable Me." Lindsay rolled her eyes in explanation. "No honey, we aren't going to call him Benjamin Minion."

"But we'll tell him that when he's twenty one… that you wanted to call him Benjamin Minion." Danny smirked down at Lucy who was scowling at him.

"So what is his name then? Is it going to be Grace like mine?"

"No, Grace is usually a girl's name, sweetheart." Lindsay explained softly.

"We're still thinkin' about his middle name, kiddo." Danny explained.

"No we're not," Lindsay interjected. "Daddy thinks Benjamin Louie… and so do I."

"Linds…"

"Baby, I like it." She smiled.

"But-" He interjected.

"So we have another kid." She cut him off. "Maybe I'll actually get to name that one."

"Benjamin Louie Messer." Danny said, sitting on the bed next to Lucy. He picked her up and placed her on his lap as he wrapped his arm around Lindsay. "What do you think Luce, like it?"

"It's okay. I prefer my name."

"Benjamin Minion? Yeah well you're gonna have to get over that one." Lindsay smirked at her little girl before pressing a kiss to her temple. "Benjamin Louie Messer. I like it," she said looking down at him. "He's definitely a Benjamin Louie."

"How do you know?" Lucy cocked her head to the side. "Does he have a name tag?"

Lindsay couldn't contain the giggle that bubbled out of her as Lucy peered at Benjamin, looking for a name tag. "He doesn't have a name tag, honey. When you're a Mommy and you hold your baby for the first time, you can just tell. It's like a magical power," Lindsay smiled. "Like Daddy and I knew you were a Lucy straight away."

"You did?" Lucy blinked.

"Yep, I really wanted to call you Lydia and Daddy wanted to call you Lucy, and we decided that when we met you we would decide then… and even though it made me sad because Daddy was right, you were definitely a Lucy, and I love that name."

"Because your friend was called Lucy… like me!" Lucy smiled toothily.

"Exactly." Lindsay smiled. "Lucy, can you do Mommy a big favour?"

Lucy nodded.

"Shuffle down from Daddy's lap and onto my bed. Daddy hasn't really held Benjamin yet and I need some kisses and cuddles from you. I've missed you."

Lucy smiled brightly at her mother before shuffling down the bed and settling near her Mommy's legs. She watched her Mommy hand her Daddy her new baby brother. She watched and waited as Daddy sat in the chair beside Mommy's bed before glancing over to Mommy with wide eyes. "Can I come sit?"

Lindsay nodded but held her arm out to stop her from trampling excitedly across her. "Be careful though baby, come this way," Lindsay lead her daughter by trailing her fingers on the bed, making a path for Lucy to follow. Eventually, Lucy managed to kneel only on the mattress of the bed and settled against Lindsay's side to which Lindsay instantly wrapped her arms around her daughter.

Lucy laid her head on Lindsay's side and gazed up at her through her brown eyes. Lindsay watched as Lucy cocked her head to the side and smiled to herself.

"What you smiling at, munchkin?" Lindsay chuckled.

"You look pretty, Mommy." Lucy smiled.

"I do?" Lindsay blinked, glancing over to Danny with a smile on her face. "Did you tell her to say that?"

"I wish I could take credit for that, babe. That was all her." Danny smiled proudly at their daughter.

"Well you look absolutely beautiful," Lindsay smiled as she pressed a kiss to Lucy's cheek. "My precious baby girl."

"Oh! I nearly forgot!" Lucy knelt on the bed and pressed a kiss to Lindsay's cheek. "That's from Uncle Mac, Mommy, he told me to give it to you. Tell him I gave it to you when he comes in."

"I will." Lindsay smiled over in Danny's direction. "How you doin' over there, Daddy?"

"We're doin' good, Mommy. Benjamin is quite the looker." He smirked. "I think he's got your good looks, babe. Just skipped me completely this time."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Please, he's gonna have blonde hair and bright blue eyes. I can see it now."

"Maybe," Danny chuckled, his eyes gazing down at his son.

"Can I hold him?"

Danny and Lindsay shared a look between themselves with a slight sense of terror in their eyes. They'd never had to deal with this before. Before they were just parents of one; they'd only had to protect Lucy and they hadn't had another child they needed to consider. With Lucy, it was just them to hold her, along with some friends and family members. But now… Lucy was a fully fledged little member of their Team Messer and they didn't have it in them to say no.

"Well, you can," Danny nodded. "But there are lots of buts you need to listen to first, okay?"

Lucy nodded and licked her lips. "I listen."

"Okay, well… Linds?" Danny searched for the words he knew he needed to say to his youngest daughter,

"Well Lucy, can you see how Daddy is holding Benjamin's head?" Lindsay collected her daughter's little face in her hand and pointed towards Danny and Benjamin. "He's being so very gentle and holding Benjamin's head really carefully because he can't hold it up himself yet. He's really tiny and you have to be so, so gentle with him Lucy. It's really important."

"Gentle. I can be gentle Mommy. That's when you have soft hands, right?"

Lindsay nodded.

"I promise I be gentle!"

Lindsay took a deep breath and wiggled on the bed. "Okay then Lucy, jump down for a second." Lucy did as she was told and looked to Lindsay for her next instructions. "Alright, Danny… umm, stand up with him and let Lucy sit in the chair."

"Are you sure about this, Linds?"

"Yeah," Lindsay nodded. "No, she needs to hold him too. I've held him, you held him and now it's Lucy's turn. We've gotta share," she smirked at him. "Just… I'll tell you what, pass Benjamin to me for a second." Danny complied somewhat reluctantly. He handed his son over to Lindsay but not before pressing a lingering kiss to his forehead first. "Alright, now Lucy, sit on the chair; bottom right to the back of the chair, okay?" Lucy did as she was told. "Now Daddy, you need to take this pillow and put it on Lucy's lap, okay? Lucy, you need to stay really still now, okay?"

"Okay," Lucy nodded, channelling all her energy on staying still.

"Right, now Lucy hold out your hand like I'm holding mine underneath Benjamin's head. Can you see?"

Lucy peered up and nodded. "I see."

"Okay, you go ahead and do that then. Daddy is going to take Benjamin from me and he's going to put him on the pillow and you're going to hold his head really carefully, okay?"

"Okay." Lucy nodded, watching as Danny took Benjamin from Lindsay.

As she handed Benjamin to her husband, Lindsay placed a hand on his arm, capturing his attention. "Kneel next to her and put your hand underneath his diaper just in case." Lindsay softly whispered in his ear.

With his heart beating rapidly in his chest, Danny took Benjamin and followed Lindsay's instruction and placed him onto Lucy's lap. Instantly both Danny and Lindsay were shocked at what they saw. Lucy had a soft face and with her free hand, that wasn't supporting her brother's head, she ran her fingertip down Benjamin's nose and poked it softly, earning a coo from him. She giggled softly and placed her hand on his diaper, over Danny's. "I'm just like you Mommy." Lucy smiled. "I'm holding our baby!"

Lindsay held her hand to her chest as she watched her little girl care so kindly and maturely for her new brother. She exhaled a sigh of relief and settled on the bed. "You sure are. You've had lots of practice with all your dollies at home."

"He's really cute," Lucy giggled. "I think I like him, Mommy."

"Well I'm glad." Lindsay smiled.

"I think I prefer him over a sister." She informed Danny quietly. "If I had a sister I'd have to share. I just get to teach him things instead… unless he wants to play dollies… then he can play with my toys."

"That's nice." Danny smiled, fighting the urge of informing her that he wouldn't be playing with dolls.

Lucy leant down and pressed a soft kiss to Benjamin's forehead, whispering "I love you." As she did so.

Lindsay had been holding it together – barely – while watching Lucy interact with her little brother, but the sweet gesture had shoved Lindsay over the emotional edge, reducing her to floods of tears. She knew she was probably going to startle Lucy, but she couldn't help it and was relying on Danny to do the explaining.

"It's okay Mommy. If you miss him, you can have him back now." Lucy said softly, looking at Danny for reassurance. "Is Mommy okay, Daddy?"

"She's okay, sweetpea. She's just really tired, and happy… and sad… and lots of things."

"Why is she sad?" Lucy furrowed her brow as she played with Benjamin's little fingers softly.

"Well..." He pursed his lips together as he watched Lindsay dab her eyes and blow her nose. "Her and Benjamin have been together for a long long time now, and even though he's right there, she misses him being inside of her belly."

"Oh." Lucy nodded. "Mommy did you cry when I was out of your belly too?"

"She cried all the time." Danny smiled, answering on behalf of his tearful wife. "She loved having you in her tummy so much that she missed you… but then she was so happy to have you in her arms and it confused her."

"So she's happy but she's sad too."

Danny nodded.

"That's confusing. I think I'd cry too." Lucy arched her brows. "Uncle Mac!"

"Are we interrupting something?" Mac asked tentatively with Christine close behind him, loitering in the door way. "We can come back tomorrow…"

"No, no," Lindsay shook her head and wiping her tears away. "I was just having one of my many moments… come in."

"So, this is the newest member to our little family then?" Mac smiled down at Lucy.

"Not me, silly… I'm Lucy."

"I know not you, goofy." Mac smiled. "I mean the little boy you're holding."

"Oh, you mean Benjamin?"

"Benjamin?" Mac glanced at Lindsay and Danny in awe. "Benjamin?" He directed his question towards them, smiling when they both nodded in confirmation. "I do mean Benjamin, Lucy. What a perfect name."

"He is gorgeous you two," Christine smiled. "How are you doing Lindsay?"

"I'm tired," she smiled. "But I'm doing okay; despite what the evidence suggests otherwise," she gestured to the tissues around her.

"It's okay," Danny smiled as he reached from where he'd been knelt on the floor to take her hand and squeeze it. "She could cry all night and I'd wipe her tears. I'm so proud of her, Mac."

"We all are; that's two beautiful, perfect children you've brought into our lives Lindsay…" Mac smiled, moving towards the bed and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "Well done."

"Thanks," Lindsay smiled before bursting into tears again. "I'm sorry," she spluttered as she reached for a tissue. "I don't know why-"

"It's the hormones, babe." Danny explained. "Listen, Lucy… can we give Benjamin back to Mommy for a little while?"

"Uh-huh." Lucy nodded. "Bye Benny."

"Benny." Danny repeated with a smile on his face as he took Benjamin from Lucy. "That's a cute nickname for him, Luce."

"You're just like your Daddy, Lucy." Mac smiled, pulling Christine a seat before getting one for himself from the other side of Lindsay's room. "Your Daddy always used to think of nick names for your Mommy."

"He used to call her Montana," Lucy informed Mac. "Mommy used to live there. Did you know that Uncle Mac?"

"I did." Mac smiled. As Lucy stood from the seat and let Danny sit next to Lindsay before taking her place on his lap, Mac's eyes were glued to Lindsay. He was watching her with awe in how she was so accustomed to being a Mom. He remembered Stella telling him how worried Lindsay was and how she had a sneaky feeling that in reality Lindsay had absolutely nothing to worry about – and she'd been right. Mac had seen very few mothers interact with their children like Lindsay interacted with her's. Lucy was as bright as a button and filled with love… and watching Lindsay with her baby son, Mac understood how and why Lucy was the way she was… it was the way Lindsay cared so deeply for her children… and Danny. Danny had a big role in Lucy's mannerisms and the way she was… but Mac was able to see the adoration Lucy had in her eyes for her mother… and vice versa.

"You look deep in thought, Mac," Christine whispered in his ear. "What are you thinking about?"

"How proud I am of her," He whispered in response.

Christine smiled softly and took his hand, squeezing it tight.

"You know, Lindsay… for declaring you weren't having any more children, you changed your tune."

"Hmm?" She said, glancing up from Benjamin's face, where she'd been trailing a finger down his nose, teasing him with a smile on her face. "What did you say, Mac?"

Shooting an amused look to Danny, Mac smiled at her. "It's okay, I'll tell you later. You get back to him…"

Without a second of protests, Lindsay immediately turned her eyes back to Benjamin.

Mac cast his eyes over to Danny and felt the strike to his chest as Lucy curled into Danny's lap and stuck her thumb into her mouth. Silently, Danny pulled the thumb from his daughter's mouth and brushed her bangs from her face. She snuggled into him as her eyes begin to flutter shut. Unknown to Danny that he was being watched, he pressed a kiss to the crown of Lucy's head and sighed contently as he took a moment to inhale his daughter's scent. Mac shook his head and swallowed the lump in his throat as he watched the man he'd witnessed transform from boy to reckless bachelor to a husband and father over the past fifteen years.

"She's tuckered out." Danny whispered as he glanced over to Mac. "I'm gonna give her five minutes and then make her a bed on the chair over there." He gestured over to the oversized arm chair in the corner of the room. "We packed a spare blanket, right honey?"

"Yeah, in the overnight bag." Lindsay replied not batting an eyelid. "Are we gonna take her home though?"

"We? You're not going anywhere, baby." Danny mused. "To be honest, I'd prefer for us to stay here. Once she's asleep, she's asleep babe. I just… I don't wanna leave you alone."

"Afraid you'll miss us?" Lindsay smirked.

"Yeah, actually." Danny smirked.

"We could always take her," Christine said softly. "I mean the guest bedroom is practically her's anyway." She shot an amused look to Mac. "You should see it now. He got a princess castle sticker for the door."

"Mac… I didn't know you had it in you." Danny smirked as he stood up and carried Lucy to the arm chair. As he placed her down, she curled into a ball and placed her thumb into her mouth, which Danny carefully removed. He placed her pink bunny rabbit into her arms which was on top of the opened overnight bag and dug out the pink blanket, laying it on top of her. "She'll be okay like that, won't she babe?"

"She'll be fine." Lindsay nodded, her eyes settling on her sleeping daughter. She let out a prolonged, content sigh. "God, I didn't know you could be this much in love."

"You have a lot to love." Mac smiled as Danny made his way back to his seat. As he passed Mac's chair, Mac stood and enveloped Danny into a hug. "Listen, come with me for a minute. I need to talk to you about something."

Danny glanced to Lindsay and she smiled. "It's okay, Christine and I need to talk about… well, we always manage to find something to talk about." Lindsay giggled, glancing at Christine. Both men knew that Lindsay and Christine's usual topic of conversation were them, but neither decided to comment.

Danny nodded and pressed a kiss to the crown of Lindsay's head before repeating the same gesture, pressing a kiss to Benjamin's forehead. "I'll be right back."

Danny followed Mac into the hallway with a few nerves settling in the pit of his stomach; he had no idea what his boss was about to say… "What do you think then?" Danny smiled, breaking the silence as they walked down the hallway together.

"About what?" Mac smirked in his direction.

"The weather." Danny jested. "My son, Mac."

Mac stopped them in the middle of the quiet hallway and shook his head. "You don't know how much pride it fills me with to hear you say that, Danny. I was just watching you then and I honestly can't even begin to tell you how much you've changed over the last fifteen years."

"I got you to thank for that. You brought Linds into my life, Mac. You're the reason I have my kids."

"That has absolutely nothing to do with me, Danny. That is all you and Lindsay. You guys have created such a loving, happy family that I honestly feel myself bursting with pride. I never in a million years thought you two would be so… perfect. You had your bumps and I always hoped you'd make it, but I had no idea to the extent of which you and Lindsay would really make it. You guys are such a fantastic team, Danny."

"Thanks Mac… comin' from you, it means a lot."

"I wanted to bring you out here just … here, take a seat," He said, gesturing to two plastic chairs nearby. Danny sat and turned to look at Mac with curious eyes. "I took a chance with you, Danny. I had a lot of people watching me closely when I hired you. A lot of people were watching you closely too… and so many times it ended in me saving your ass and there was a handful of times where I thought that I might have made a mistake, but time and time again you proved everyone wrong. You've always been the underdog."

"Everyone likes an underdog." Danny smirked.

"Not when they're jumping off buildings and shooting up busy subway stations." Mac sobered Danny. "But in all seriousness, I've watched you transform from a hotheaded kid, to a grown man making good choices with his family in mind. You're like the son I never had, Danny… and if you were my son, I can't even begin to express how proud I would be to call you my son. I hope Benjamin makes you as proud as you make me."

Danny took a deep breath and fought the tears collecting in his eyes. "I love you, Mac."

"I love you too, Danny."

"You know," he coughed, wiping his eyes from the tears that had escaped. "I know I wasn't always the best choice you could have made and I know that I made your life hell sometimes. But I want you to know that all I've ever wanted is to make you proud. I hope that one day I can be half the Investigator and Detective you are, Mac."

"Well you know what Danny, that's really flattering… but at the end of the day, what matters more is family. You're everything to those three people sat in there. I know that you are absolutely everything to Lindsay, and your daughter Danny, she idolises you. And your son is going to worship the ground his Dad walks on. To have the people that mean most to you in the world love you that much… that is infinitely better than being a good CSI."

Danny exhaled heavily. "I don't really know what to say, Mac."

"Don't say anything," Mac smiled. "Just love Lindsay with all your heart. Look after Lucy and Benjamin with every ounce of your being and you'll be set."

And with that, Mac stood, leaving Danny alone with his thoughts. He watched as his mentor, boss and friend strode confidently back to the hospital room that currently housed the three most important people in Danny's life. Danny sat back on the seats for a moment and exhaled heavily, Mac's words weighing heavily on him. The weight wasn't a bad feeling though – for a change. There had been so many conversations he'd shared with Mac in the past that left him feeling foolish, stupid and childish. This conversation however had been something entirely different.

Danny held a hand to his chest as he felt the pride soaring within himself. All he had ever wanted to do was to make Mac proud of him; make him believe that he'd been worth the risk. He'd been a hotheaded fuck up when he'd first started at the crime lab… but as the years had passed, he'd had to dig to find the person he actually was – not the bravado and façade he'd assumed.

He was proud of himself for where he was in his life. It had taken a lot of work, but he was happy. He had the most beautiful, wonderful family. He owned his own home in the outskirts of the best city in the world with the woman he loved more than anything. His children – because he had two now – were magical creations that took both the best from himself and Lindsay and the result wowed Danny every day.

He stood from his chair and began the short walk back to Lindsay's hospital room. Instead of heading straight in, he hovered at the door, looking through the glass. His tired eyes instantly focused on his equally tired wife. She'd been through hell and back over the last day with her labour, but she still looked absolutely beautiful to him. He exhaled heavily and watched her as she smiled at Benjamin before turning her attention to Lucy, who was now sat at the edge of her bed. Despite her exhaustion, Lindsay had the biggest, brightest smile on her face and was continually entertaining their rambunctious daughter. Always putting herself after others, Danny felt his heart thud in his chest as he watched Mac silently stand from where he'd retaken his seat as he walked over to Lindsay. He watched as Mac cupped Lindsay's face with his hands before pressing a kiss to her forehead. Danny knew exactly what Mac had said- that he was proud of her.

Pushing through the door, Danny smiled brightly at his wife, as she wiped a stray tear away, undoubtedly from Mac's display of affection. She wordlessly reached out for him and he crossed the room quickly. She grabbed his hand and interlocked her fingers around his tugging him close. He sat on the edge of her bed, pressing a kiss to her temple and whispered "I love you," into her hair.

"I love you too." She whispered, turning to face him. "Thank you for giving me him," she said softly, so that only he heard her. "And her," she gestured down to Lucy who was turned on the bed, engrossed in a fierce staring , slash, giggling competition with Christine despite her being peacefully asleep moments before. "I love them so much and it's all down to you that I have them."

Danny silently shook his head. "I should be thankin' you," he said softly. "Without you, they wouldn't be here. I just helped you along the way. This is all you, babe."

She pulled a face at him and he caught her chin and pressed his thumb against her lips, making her look at him. "I mean it," he told her. He was going to say other things to convince her of such but all the words dissolved on his tongue. Instead he found that the only thing he could do was close the distance between them and press his lips to her's. They always had a deep connection; even from their first kiss in this very hospital, just a few floors below when Flack had been hanging in between life and death. Despite the severity that day had brought, he found comfort in Lindsay, and later he'd found out that she found that same comfort in him. Their connection was undeniable and quite frankly, one of the many things he loved about his relationship with his Montana.

When they eventually broke apart, they simultaneously pressed their foreheads together and smiled at one another. And in that moment, even though their room was full of activity; they felt like the only two in the world.

* * *

**So there we have it, another story from me done and dusted. Benjamin Messer. I hope you guys like the name! That's what I've decided at least his name will be. I will forever hate the fact that we never got to find what DL would have named their son. I may pester the f*$ out of Zachary Reiter and Trey Callaway on twitter to find out what his name would have been. Anyway, my issues aside, I do genuinely hope that you enjoyed this story - sending you all so much for love sticking with it and reading it to the end! **

**Let me know what you though about the name and ending. Until next time! xo**


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